


the realms of foxes

by Katyuana



Series: blueberry winter [1]
Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: Child Abuse, Cross Species Relationship, Discrimination, Dysfunctional Family, F/M, Family Dinner, Foxes, Grief of a Parental Figure, Motherhood, Muzzle, Panic Attacks, Possibly Canonical Death, Poverty, They Tried Their Best, criminal activity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-16
Updated: 2016-03-16
Packaged: 2018-05-27 01:16:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6263785
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katyuana/pseuds/Katyuana
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"So my mother scraped together enough money to buy me a brand-new uniform." One act and one flashback only shows us one glimpse of Nick Wilde's mother. </p><p>Who is she?</p><p>(This goes a little AU from canon because I cannot resist)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. HA

When Matilda Todd was young, she kept her nails filed and her mouth closed to hide her sharp teeth, hardly opening to speak. It earned her a reputation of a quiet child, an absolute wallflower, but it was better than being singled out for being loud and disruptive. There was only one other fox in her class. The two of them spent time together out of near necessity. It was a united front; if you were alone, you were sure to be targeted. She spent her days in the dirty public school with her secondhand clothes, watching the big prey animals closely. All of them were kids but kids can be cruel. Matilda kept her mouth shut and never performed any better than anyone. She had _ideas, _though. She wanted to do something but it was just too dangerous to stand out.__

__Her mother held her hand tightly on outings, eying the large numbers of prey animals who eye the pair back, just as suspiciously. Matilda was never let out of her mother's sight for more than a second. Foxes were on their own in this unfriendly part of town but it was the best Angie Todd could afford for her and her daughter. Angie worked nights and days almost 24/7 and barely scrimped by. Pay wasn't good for predators in this part of town but there wasn't any way for a single mother to pay for a place in a better part of town._ _

__Matilda had a dream to teach others when she was young. She watched how teachers connected with students and she wanted that too so badly that she felt a rare fire of passion. But when she asked about it, her mother's face fell. Matilda could feel her heart prickling with the realization that she could never do it. No one was going to let her near their babies. A sly fox was never to be trusted. Cunning fox, never know what they might do. Matilda had cried for hours when her mother told her that she could never do it. There was no chance._ _

__"I want," she sobs. "I want to help, I wanna do good. I wanna_ be _good!"__

__Angie only shakes her head and Matilda's dream is steadily crushed with her words. "It won't work, baby. No one will ever look at you and see anything other than a sly fox. You can never do it."_ _

__Matilda keeps on crying. She has to toughen up for life, Angie thinks. It's going to destroy her little kit if no one warns her._ _

__"Matilda, my girl," her mother whispers that night, both of them curled together on their small shared bed. "Don't let them see you broken. They may be prey but they learn to hunt." Her voice is tired and she tucks the threadbare blanket under Matilda's chin. "Don't let them see that they got to you."_ _

__Matilda, all of ten years old, nods silently and her mother sighs. The wind beats against the windows and she falls asleep to her mother's heartbeat and the wind wailing outside._ _


	2. Life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matilda misses her mother but life goes on. She has a husband and a baby on the way. She does not have time to grieve but she misses her mother so much.

Nine long years of schooling and working late hours to support herself later and Matilda marries Constantine Wilde, the only other fox in her class, who is something like a high school sweetheart, hardly three months out of graduation. It's such a quiet affair that sometimes she catches herself in the realization that she's actually married. She's Matilda Wilde now. She no longer bears her mother's surname. The couple have matching simple metal wedding rings and a tiny shoebox of an apartment together. No one attends the wedding except from some predator friends from high school as witnesses. Matilda's mother died two years before, her father was never mentioned. Constantine never knew a parent figure, living in a group home with a cliche of other orphaned predators who kept together out of necessity; the prey orphans and the caretakers weren't the kindest they could be to young predators. Matilda wished that her mother could've been there. Angie Todd worked herself to death trying to support her. She should've seen her daughter finding someone to live a better life with. 

Neither of them seek out a higher education. There's no way either of them could afford it and they don't have time either. Time is money and money is survival. 

Matilda works long hours for a pittance as a secretary in a dusty half-abandoned office and in her remaining hours she works as a hotline operator and Constantine does some sort of shady business that, put together, pulls in enough money for rent and food. They aren't living the high life but Matilda is happy enough and she doesn't ask about Constantine's hustling work because Constantine comes home to her faithfully and they have enough food to eat. She can't ask for much more. 

Matilda is a small fox whose clothes have always been secondhand and patched more often than not. She's not the most intimidating animal yet her coworkers seemed convinced she's going to attack them all. The work environment isn't what anyone would call friendly but she can't go looking for another job with her long hours. When she operates the hotline, no ones knows she's a predator. She's never experienced such kindness from prey like she has on that hotline. Matilda hardly has time for community friendships but she makes friends anyway with their neighbors of fennec foxes. The other neighbors' working hours don't ever align with hers enough to actually see them so she never knows them. 

Two years later, Matilda is pregnant with one baby fox kit. The couple were relieved when the scan came up with just one kit; they can't imagine having more than one with their financial situation. She's scared for her kit out in the world. Constantine worries about money and Matilda knows it's going to get tougher. It's hard enough for two predators to live safely, she can't imagine her kit joining them like this. Her stomach balloons and she finally has to take maternal leave. Partly because she's far enough along that she felt the need to stop and another part because of her coworkers' attitude toward her pregnancy makes her feel some measure of fear for herself and her kit. She knows what they say about her. That her husband wandered off with other vixens, that the kit in her belly isn't Constantine's and a few other insulting ideas about her mother and parentage. It didn't matter. 

Nicholas P. Wilde was born on a sunny Thursday in that hole in the wall apartment with the family friend of the fennec fox family midwife present but no other medical help. It was a tough birth but Matilda made it with minimal complications to her or her newborn kit. When she was handed her kit, Matilda's arms were shaking. She wished that her mother could be by her side, holding her hand. Instead, it was Constantine who stayed by her side the whole time and, after the birth, only had eyes for his kit. Little Nicholas was tiny, with squeezed shut eyes and disproportionately large ears on his tiny head. Constantine fell in love immediately. Matilda had already loved her kit but seeing her husband's heart melting, she feels more at home than she has in years. This is her family, her pack, small as it may be.

Matilda's little kit became her whole heart that day and she knew she would do anything for him and her husband. There was no one else that came close.


	3. we're a family

Family bliss could only last for so long. Someone had to pay the bills when they started to pile up and Constantine had to go back to work doing whatever it is that he did. He came home when the sun dipped past the tall buildings and Matilda didn't even need a clock to know when her husband was coming home. She just looked outside at the shadows. 

Matilda's days turn to nursing Nicholas every two hours and listening for his distinctive kit's whine in between to hear if he needs anything. He was a demanding kit, fussy more often than not. She barely had time to sleep and eat for herself but she didn't mind. Constantine was a blessing when he can home, helping in anyway he could. While Nicky's fur was baby soft and the color was barely present, it was obvious that his fur resembled Matilda's own bright fur that she inherited from her own mother. It warmed her heart to see something of her mother in him. She missed her like an open sore to this day. 

When Matilda went back to work because of the dwindling maternity leave days, it was with a heavy heart and the midwife's daughter as a nanny. She hated leaving her baby behind. 

The years passed slowly yet too fast. Her little Nicholas grew up quickly, with Constantine's clear green eyes wide open with curiosity. He also seemed to inherited Constantine's penchant for sweet-talking, charming his teachers easily. They were able to stop having a nanny when school started for Nicholas, which was a relief on the family's savings. Constantine had to pull in extra money when Nicky's school came asking and asking for more and more money and sometimes Matilda and Constantine entertained the thought of homeschooling as an cheaper way but little Nicky was so friendly that she never took steps to make it happen. He'd be stifled in a lonely home without anyone to talk to.

Nicholas was so happy that when he came around asking about being in the Junior Ranger Scouts, Matilda didn't have the heart to push down his dream like her mother did to hers. She, instead, started penny pinching and scrimping and saving. She put in a few extra hours at the office, even though staying longer than she usually did make her fur crawl. Finally, she bought him that new Junior Ranger Scout's outfit. She could never find it secondhand and she knew that if she made it herself, the other kids would tease him and she wouldn't be able to stand it if she could've done something different to help him fit in. It was going to be hard enough.

Little Nicky was so happy when she presented it to him and Matilda only felt pride seeing her kit in such pristine clothes and started to tickle him, just to see him giggle and smile. Maybe, her little Nicholas had a chance of his dream making it off the ground. 

 

_________________________

 

Barely an hour later, Nicky comes running, stumbling, limping, home, sobbing his heart out. His expensive new uniform was ripped and his carefully brushed fur was messy. 

Matilda drops to her knees in front of her kit and asks almost frantically, "What happened? Nicky, baby?" She smoothes the fur around his cheeks with desperate hands, seeking wounds or bloodstains. 

"Mama, Mama," he cries, a whine she hasn't heard in years making its way out of his hiccuping chest, his head dipping forward to hide himself in her shirt. 

"My kit, my baby," Matilda whispers into his fluffy head. "What happened? Did someone try to grab you? Did they hurt you?" She presses terrified kisses into his fur and feels her heart pounding, waiting for his answer, thinking of everything that could've gone wrong on his walk home. 

"They-they- it was dark and I thought it was just initiation but they hit me and then the leader boy, he-he-he put a m-muzzle on me," Nicky whimpers, squirming against her arms in utter shock. 

Matilda's heart had dropped through her chest the instant she heard the word 'muzzle.' A fire that she hasn't felt in years starts to spark and burn her chest. "They… they hit you?"

Nicky nods miserably and starts to cry anew. He can't talk anymore, mouth locked through his own terror, and his breathing has started to work itself into too-shallow breaths, that, along with the crying, is going to make him start coughing and start a cycle of misery and panic. She's seen panic attacks before, might've had a few herself after her mother's death and she knows how to deal with them. She just never wanted to see it in her baby. 

Matilda puts aside all her anger at those ignorant children and focuses all her love and care for her little kit in her arms. Her fire, long since doused and stomped on, creeps through her heart and starts to burn again. They muzzled her baby. _Her baby. ___"You can't let them see that they got to you," she says instead, echoing words her mother once told her. Her baby was muzzled like a savage animal when all Nicky has ever been is sweet as sugar and friendlier than anyone. "Don't let them see what they did. They'll come running back to see and I'll get them, Nicky baby. Don't you worry none. I'll take care of this."

She takes care of where Nicky got hit and the bruisings on his baby fat cheeks from the muzzle's straps. She kisses every spot and makes sure he knows that he's loved. 

Constantine comes home to a silent house. Nicky had cried himself to sleep, not another word coming out of his mouth during the last three hours. Matilda carries him to her chest like he's a tiny kit again. Her eyes are blazing and a steel resolve has been wrought in her chest. "Constantine," Matilda says, her quiet voice belying a hidden strength. "Something happened to Nicky today. Tell me what you do to bring in money. They need to pay." 

Constantine paused halfway in the door. His wife is walking and swaying around their two room apartment with their sleeping child in her arms like she did when Nicky was born and she's never asked anything about his shady dealings before. "What happened?" he rasps as he runs a paw down his son's back in concern. "Is he okay?" 

"They muzzled my baby," Matilda says without pause. 

Constantine's heart turns to lead. "They- what?" 

"Tell me what you do to bring in that money because I'm sure it's not legal and there is never going to be a day when the police listen to foxes. They need to pay," Matilda says grimly, "Now." 

Those kids might have just been playing at being adults, mimicking what their parents threaten and say. Matilda is going to find out. But it's not enough anymore. None of them know what they've done to Nicky. He's going to be feeling this for the rest of his life. It's his moment of realizing that foxes aren't accepted; Matilda thinks of hers, knowing that she couldn't become her dream. She never could've done the same to Nicky's but she can't help but wonder if it would've been an easier one. Matilda has been a helpless fox her whole life and now she thinks it's time to show how sly foxes can be when they're pushed. And she's been pushed around enough. Because… 

It's two weeks before Nicky utters another word. 


	4. when the light comes through

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matilda is fifty three. Sounds like it's time to have a happy family at last.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jesus Christ, thank you for everyone who reads this for sticking through with me. Extra thanks bc this is essentially an OC story so thanks for reading it. 
> 
> Matilda has a lot of dialogue and bantering with her son. Yay dialogue!
> 
> Also, since I have started gaining more creativity I'm going to rewrite the beginning of this story in a different installment because you guys liked it even though it wasn't that good. I had really wanted to include more details on Matilda's life in this, including the fennec family's involvement but I wasn't able to squeeze it in. 
> 
> The rewritten version will have the same last chapter as this one, barring a few edits. 
> 
> Also, an AU version of this where (since foxes have typically 4-6 kits or something) Nick has a lot of siblings. It's going to be part of this series so look out for that.

It was the second night of a long stakeout, with Nick and Judy sitting in their disguised police car, waiting almost impatiently for something to happen yet somewhat content for nothing to happen. The clock on the dashboard of their car glowed dimly, showing a time no one should see at night. Card games had been played until the idea of picking up the deck was painful and, since the house in front of them was dark and silent, they had started a question and answer game between them. 

The question of 'who's your hero and reasons why?' was asked and Judy has answered Gazelle, citing her music and the protest that she'd organized in the Nighthowler case. Nick had nodded absently, seeming to be deep in thought. 

When Judy waits for Nick's answer, the fox doesn't say a word. The silence stretches without any awkwardness, as it's too comfortable between them for any. She's almost forgotten even asking anything in her hazy, half-sleeping doze.

Finally, Nick says, in a pensive voice, "Do you remember the story I told you in the gondola?"

Judy looks at him, blinking herself more awake. She does remember, it's not exactly something anyone forgets. The thick silence makes action feel like moving through honey and Nick's voice is a rich sound that matches the night's atmosphere around them, causing Judy to remain quiet. 

Even though she doesn't answer, Nick continues without her input. "Remember how I said my mother scraped enough money to buy enough for a new uniform?" A bitter laugh of _hah_. "We were dirt poor and she still did that for me. She's my hero, Judy."

Judy's breath catches. It isn't often that Nick calls her Judy. Usually it's Carrots, or even just Hopps. He only calls her that when he's serious.

"As for reasons, well. I didn't tell you what my mom did after that story, did i?" Something glints in his eyes. "My mother, who was younger than I am right now, barely twenty-eight years old. At that time, she had a job. A real job. And she quit it right then when they wouldn't let her stay with me while I was… recovering. She'd had that job for almost ten years. That was our family's only legitimate job, besides a side job that she was fired from when I was younger. See, jobs for foxes are hard to find and harder to keep. My dad was a hustler, had been for all of his life. Risky business, being a professional hustler. Getting killed was the biggest risk. He never tried to get a real job, no one would hire him, a fox. But my mom? She tried for us, for some sense of safety, and she endured ten years of a terrible job for us, earning money that barely paid the bills. But she gave that up the instant I needed her with me. She held her head high and left it without a backwards glance. My mother, she went into crime along with my father. While I had to admit that my dad was pretty good at the hustling, my mom, she had it down to a science. She was good at it. With the extra money, she moved us to a better place, even though she's lived in that neighborhood all her life. It was all she'd ever known and she left it behind." Nick paused, his thoughts consumed with memories. 

Judy put a paw on his arm, like she had long ago on the Gondala. She didn't say a word, feeling that if she spoke, it would shatter the tentative and delicate silence and this fragile trust in Judy. 

"When we moved away from the there, we changed schools. A different district, a different Junior Ranger Scouts. I never saw any of other scouts again until a few years ago," Nick says, tilting his head back. He scratches at his neck, every movement measured and deliberate. "He was working in a gas station. When I saw them, well, I uh, I nearly fell apart again. It brought back a lot of memories. Called my mom up in a panic and she calmed me down, talked to me over the phone for hours. She finally told me what she did. Now, she never hurt those kids," Nick says, shaking his head. "She would never hurt a child, no matter what. But my mom got revenge for me anyway. She ruined their futures. Stolen items found in their bags, circumstantial evidence of them being near illegal activities, anything she could do to dirty their reputations. All those boys, they never went to college, never got past that dead end job at a supermarket. It's probably wrong to be feel good about that but… it's been almost twenty five years later and I'm still terrified of muzzles and seeing one of them almost made me relapse. So, I'm not too broken up about that."

Nick shifted again, this time to face Judy. Judy wasn't sure what her face was expressing but tries to look supportive. She grips his arm, trying to convey her meaning without words. 

"My mom's over fifty now. She's still hustling, although I think she's technically a crime boss now. She's my mother and one of the most important people in my life. She is my hero. Since I'm a police officer now, I've been turning a blind eye to her less than legal activities but… you're my partner and I want you two to meet this Sunday for dinner. You're family to me but I need you to promise that you won't tell anyone."

"You want me to meet your mother?" Judy squeaks, finally speaking. 

Nick nods decisively. "You two are the most important people in my life. Of course I want you guys to meet."

Judy feels a well of emotion rising in her. Happiness mostly, nervousness and surprised glee. Some sort of thankfulness, a feeling of being trusted, honored that Nick considers her important enough to him that he wants her to meet his mother and to risk her telling someone. "I would love to meet her, Nick. I promise, I won't say a word to anyone about anything less than legal."

Nick puffs out a big relieved breath, his relief evident on his face. "Thanks, Carrots."

Judy smiles at him, feeling impossibly fond of this amazing fox.

The night starts to dissolve into predawn light and, with the stars fading into the background, the partners take their leave. In this strange in-between of time, the conversation before feels like a dream but Judy knows that it wasn't, a certainty she holds onto when she turns in the short report of their stakeout and goes home with Nick at her side.

••••••••••••

_That Sunday_

Judy and Nick pile into the car to leave for Mrs Wilde's dinner. Nick is reciting the things that Judy should remember for it, even though he's said it five times ever since asking her to come to dinner. Admittedly, Judy hasn't exactly been attentive each time so she appreciates him repeating it on the drive over. 

"And do not, for whatever reason, mention my father," Nick finishes. 

"Uh. Why not?" Judy asks, parking in a lot near Mrs Wilde's lot. 

"It's a touchy subject, Carrots. Unless she says something about him- doubtful- do not say a word. I mean it," Nick points a claw at her, "not a word. At all."

Judy holds up her paws in surrender. "Not a word." She has other worries.

They walk up to a humble home in Savannah Central's Suburbs. The evening is setting in, lessening the heat of the day along with the glare of the sun and turning the sky into a pale purple blue. The stars are the tiniest of pinpricks. The house, painted in pale gray, is in a prime location to the rest of Savannah Central and close enough to Downtown. The house is well taken care of and there's a small, brightly blooming pink cactus on the front steps. 

Judy starts nervously fussing with her outfit, a sunflower patterned tank top and comfortable brown capris. "Are you sure this is okay? I don't look too-"

"Calm down, Carrots. You'll be fine," Nick says confidently. He's wearing a slightly wrinkled tshirt and jeans, comfortably casual in a way that Judy envies. 

"How do you know that?" Judy hisses under her breath as they climb the small steps.

"I just do," Nick says smugly and presses the doorbell.

The sound of the chime sends Judy's heart pounding twice as fast as normal. She takes a big breath, in and out. Nick just looks smugly calm, an expression she had previously thought impossible to pull off until meeting him.

The door, after some faintly heard fumbling with metal locks, is thrown open and Matilda Wilde steps out quickly, with a sharp, toothy smile on her face, and catches Nick in a big hug. Nick sinks into it happily, almost having to lean over a little bit to hug his mother properly and tucking his face into her neck like a kit again. 

"Hi, Mom," Nick says, muffled by her neck fur.

"Nicky, baby, it's so good to see you," Matilda Wilde coos at him, pulling back to kiss his cheek. 

"Mom, I told you, call me Nick. I'm a grown up now," Judy's partner says with the air of someone who has said it for years.

"And you're still my little Nicky," Matilda says with the matching air of someone who has stubbornly refused for years. "Oh, your shirt is wrinkled. Nicky, when was the last time you washed this shirt?" Her paws tugs at the shirt's hems, smoothing it out with the ease of a mother used to her son being messy. 

Nick's sigh is as fake as a plastic flower and his eyes are fond and affectionate. Matilda's own are the same, differing color aside. 

"Now," she says with a stern voice, turning to Judy with narrowed eyes, "who is this stranger that you've brought to the family dinner, without even telling me?" 

Judy is caught off guard when Mrs Wilde faces her, suddenly realizing how much Nick resembles her. Same fur, same face structure, same nose color and, with the intelligence showing in her eyes, Judy sees it in Nick when he's solving a problem. The only huge difference that she can see is their eyes and how Matilda's fur has whitened with age, making the rest of her red fur seem brighter by comparison. Judy thinks that it feels like looking into Nick's future, seeing an older version of him. Mrs Wilde is getting on in the years but she moves with spry grace and readiness. She has an air of being capable of weathering a storm with dignity if not ease. Judy feels respect building. 

"Ah, I'm Judy Hopps, ma'am, Nick's partner at the ZPD," Judy says, recovering quickly and barely stopping herself from saluting.

Mrs Wilde's eyes only narrow further, pale honey hardening like amber. "Hopps, huh? Wouldn't happen to be that one in the news and the one that broke my Nicky's heart?"

 _"Mom!"_ Nick hisses, scandalized. 

Judy holds her head up high even as she scrambles for words. "I-I made a mistake, ma'am. Even though he forgave me, I realize that I messed up. Nick was the one who really saved me and I owe him everything, Mrs Wilde, and I'm proud to call him my partner."

There's a stare off between Mrs Wilde and Judy, with Nick as the nervous spectator. Then Mrs Wilde's eyes soften and a smile, showing off sharp teeth, cracks her stony visage. "Standing your ground. Good, you've got a backbone. Welcome to my home, little lady. Don't call me ma'am or Mrs Wilde, just call me Matilda."

Both Nick and Judy deflate with relief at the acceptance. Matilda turns into the house and gestures for them to follow her inside. While her back is turned, the partners reach out and hold paws briefly, reassuring each other then releasing just as quick. The door is closed behind them, blocking off the heat outside. 

While they walk to the kitchen, Judy notices the picture frames over the dark green walls. She takes the opportunity to look at them, seeing a family history that she had only recently become aware of. 

An old photograph shows a much younger Matilda wearing thick warm clothes next to another fox wearing a leather jacket and who, judging from the charming grin, can only be Nick's father. The two of them stand in front of brick building that looks faintly like a school. The two of them are smiling and holding paws, clearly in love. There was a smaller picture, one of a different moment. It's a picture of a pregnant Matilda standing with another pregnant fox, one with huge ears reminiscent of Finnick. Both are tired but smiling. Another was a young Matilda and Nick's father in front of an apartment that makes Judy think of her first apartment, small and cramped. Some of the pictures are confusing without context, which is something that Judy lacks. An abandoned farmhouse covered in snow and a makeshift shelter made with tarp and the underside of a dumpster are some of the pictures that mystify her. 

The rest of the pictures have Nick growing as a young kit, making a mess in the kitchen cooking with his mother, sleeping on top of his also sleeping mother, wearing little overalls and grinning, first day of school, first day of high school and everything in between. 

Judy is charmed by all the pictures and her like of Matilda increases with each step. 

The kitchen, when they get to it, is painted a warm earthy brown with lighter yellow countertops. A bouquet of proud hydrangeas and gladiolus sits on the windowsill, soaking up the weakening evening light. The wooden table is old and set with two pairs of plates and cups with a pitcher of lemonade in the middle, dripping with condensation. 

"Here, I made spaghetti for dinner but I didn't expect you bringing a guest, Nicky, much less a rabbit friend, so I don't have much for you." She pauses to direct a pointed look at her son, who only looks faintly chagrined. "I have some blueberry muffins from the bakery, Judy, would that be alright for you?" Matilda says, bringing out another plate and cup for Judy. 

"That's perfectly alright, ma'am," Judy says even as Nick instantly focuses on the muffins instead of the spaghetti.

"Didn't I just say don't call me ma'am? I'm not that old," Matilda tsks, setting the basket of muffins on the table. 

"Oh, no! I didn't mean to imply-" Judy rushes to clarify and apologize, heart jumping up to her throat. 

Matilda just tips her head back and laughs, a loud joyful sound that Judy can hear in Nick's quieter laughs. "I'm just playing with you, dear. It's alright, here, take a muffin." 

Even as Judy takes the muffin, she's blushing under her fur at the playful trick. Nick is chuckling and Judy tries to discreetly elbow him but he twists easily out of the way in the guise of getting a serving of spaghetti. 

Matilda watches them with satisfaction, seeing a happy son and headstrong future daughter in law. Good. Having a happy family is good. She sits down and gestures for them to do the same.

They do so, Judy looking embarrassed, but pleased at his thoughtfulness, when Nick puts a stack of magazines on her seat so that she can actually see over the edge of the table when she sits. Matilda pays that no mind. 

"Nicky, did you know Mr Big sent me a invitation for his daughter's baby shower? Isn't that surprising? I had thought that we had been banned from ever setting paw in that house again," Matilda says in that patented mothers' tone of voice that says she knows exactly what happened and is just getting their kid to admit it.

Nick coughs, setting his cup down hastily. "Uh, yeah. That's very surprising." He tugs at his shirt collar, studiously avoiding his mother's eyes. 

Matilda only hums, looking so innocently smug that Judy starts to grin, very clearly seeing where Nick got that expression. Like mother like son. 

Matilda presses forward. "Alright, now. Tell me about that Bellweather mess. Those papers were hardly any help and you've been so busy at the police academy that I haven't been able to get the full story."

Nick shoots a quick glance at Judy, one that clearly says, _we are omitting everything dangerous_. Judy privately agrees and thus begins a carefully sanitized version of their adventure. 

Nick is careful about the details, smooth talking to cover up the heavily omitted parts. Judy is less subtle about it, cutting herself off when she realizes what she's about to say and backtracking. It is actually really hard to talk about it all, as they were in danger about ninety percent of the time. 

Matilda isn't fooled even a little bit but allows the children their ruse. If they want to protect her, that's fine. She'll find out anyway.

The topic shifts to any other police adventures of the duo and, although those aren't exactly safe either, those police assignments are infinitely more safe than that Bellweather mess.

As the dinner starts to wind down, the doorbell rings. Matilda looks up. "Oh, that must be the package I ordered. Nicky, can you go get it for me? These legs aren't what they used to be."

Nick laughs at that. "As if you aren't still in the prime of your life."

"You're too sweet, Nicky," Matilda says sweetly, preening a little. 

Nick disappears towards the front of the house, tail swishing behind him. As he does so, Judy realizes that she is alone with Matilda for the first time. A glance up at Matilda shows that the older fox is looking at her with thoughtful eyes.

"You moved to Zootopia to become a police officer, Judy. Must've been a big change," Matilda says with a leading tone.

Judy nods, confused. "I moved here from Bunnyburrow. From the country to the city."

"Yes. Now, I'm just going to assume this but I'm going to say that, when you first got to the police force, you got very little respect from your coworkers. You weren't very prepared for this, you wanted to be a cop to help people but people didn't want your help. Thought Zootopia was, pardon the pun, a utopia for all species to achieve their dreams," says Matilda, as easy as reading a book, her tone a mirror of Nick's when he was telling her about her probable fate. 

The rabbit's mouth gapes. "Nick did that to me too, is that genetic? Knowing things about people?" Judy finally blurts out. These foxes! Apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

Matilda laughs again, genuine surprise and amusement twinkling in her eyes. "Reading people is just a skill that any hustler worth their salt can do. But you still want to the change the world, Judy, which is better than us cynical old folk. You're a good kid, one I'd be proud to call my own." The knowing look that the vixen gives Judy tells her exactly what she means.

"Oh? Oh- so, you… you know about me and Nick? Did he tell you?" Judy barely dares to ask. 

"He didn't have to tell me, I could tell right away when his heart got stolen. I'm a… well, I'm not going to say _thief_ , Officer," she paused to give Judy a theatrically cautious look, marred by the way she looked entirely too amused and Judy stifles a giggle into her muffin, "but I can tell when something's been stolen. You're doing good by my son and he's happier than he's ever been since he was a kit."

"So…" Matilda spreads her paws out in a gesture that encompasses everything that she means without saying a word. "Welcome to the family, Judy."

Judy's throat feels tight. "Thank you," she sniffles, rubbing at her eyes quickly. "That means a lot to me." She'd been so worried that Nick's mother wouldn't approve, as besides the cross species relationship, she is also a rabbit. But Matilda didn't care about that. She just cared about her son's happiness. 

Nick chooses this moment to reemerge from the front of the house, hoisting a beige package under his arm, which he plops in front of his mother. "Got your mail, Mom. Watch out when you pick it up, it's kinda heavy. What is it?"

"You didn't shake it, did you?" Matilda asks as she pulls into her lap and jabs a sharp claw into the seam of the tape to cut it. 

"Of course not!" Nick says indignantly but Matilda only hums knowingly, which makes Nick suddenly become interested in looking at Judy intently. "So, ah- Judy, are you alright?" he asks worriedly, seeing the wetness around her eyes. His paw makes its way to her shoulder with a cursory glance toward his mother, whose attention is 'riveted' to pouring lemonade.

Judy chuckles wetly, coughing to clear her throat. "I'm fine, Nick, just swallowed a muffin wrong." She puts her own paw on his and smiles at him.

Matilda just smiles, pretending to looking at the contents of her box. She hasn't had a happy family in years and seeing it in front of her after so long is like coming out of deep waters for a breath of air. Good. 

"So Mom, what's in the package?"

"Something I ordered online. Sort of like a present to myself." Matilda hefts it out of the box. It's an digital picture frame. "It's, ah, a digital collection of every picture I have and this thing," she taps a claw lightly against the thing's screen, "will show all of them. I won't lose anything to water damage or even just to time. They'll be here." Her voice is distant.

Nick's expression softens. "Mom-"

"Eat your spaghetti, Nicky, leave the muffins to poor Judy, those muffins are the only thing she's got," Matilda says, voice abruptly switching from distant to absentminded scolding as she sets her new frame on the empty chair next to her. "I'll set that up later."

The rest of dinner progresses without too much fanfare. It's late when the pair are walking out the door. Matilda follows them out, dabbing napkins at Nick's mouth. "You missed a spot." 

Nick leans away, nose twitching. "I'm fine, Mom, really. And my fur is _red,_ no one going to notice some sauce." His tongue sweeps around the edges of his mouth anyway. 

"Still." Matilda hands the napkins over to Judy, who takes them bemusedly. "Be safe driving home."

"We will," Nick promises, leaning forward to peck at her cheek. "I love you."

"Love you too, baby," Matilda says in return. Then she goes for Judy, placing a kiss on the top of her head. "Stay safe, Judy."

Judy is too surprised to say anything but nods, holding the napkins tightly. Nick is surprised too but they head off to the parking lot, Matilda waving goodbye and waiting until they turn onto a different street to go back inside her home. 

Luck's never been on the Wilde family's side but it seems that it's turning around. Matilda can only think to herself, _it's about time_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Key differences from first and last chapter: Matilda smiles and shows off all her teeth, her claws are sharp and not dulled, she has a home and not a one bedroom apartment. She's so much better when she stopped hating herself for who she is.
> 
> Constantine is implied to be dead, from wounds sustained during his criminal activities or a sickness, and either died or received notice of his impending death when Nick was twelve. This comes from the fact that Nick Wilde started hustling at age twelve (whether this is true or not is debatable) so something must've changed drastically to make Nick feel like he had to make money at that young age and I can only think of his father dying and his mother grieving and therefore no income as a trigger for him thinking that. I'm really sorry about his death and I had written out a very dramatic scene depicting it but I had to cut it in the editing stage so it's up to you. I don't believe that Constantine would willingly abandon his family so no, he did not leave them. 
> 
> The digital picture frame that Matilda receives, she puts all her photos of Constantine, him and her, including Constantine and baby Nicky. She had been so paranoid that she would lose her physical copies of the pictures of her late husband that she got that to ease her mind. Sorry if it seemed odd.
> 
> I hope people are happy with Matilda's revenge? I didn't want to go too far but they really did hurt Nick. I mean, he's thirty two and he still gets flashbacks when he sees muzzles.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading this and commenting!


End file.
